[Skyline]

Lilred you are right................had a close call years ago when I was moose hunting. In those days wearing blaze orange was the law where I was.

Early one morning I spotted a bull moose in a logging block and let him have it in the lungs with my .30-06. The bull walked about 20 yards and then began to sway and finally fell against a small pile of logging debris in a semi-sitting up position, deader than a mackerel.

I walked up and was standing back of the moose staring at it to make sure it was dead and wondering how I was going to pull him off the log pile and get him over on his back (I was by myself). Now bear in mind I am standing in an open cut block, rifle in hand and wearing a blaze orange vest.

The next thing I know I hear a whop as a bullet hits the moose and then the muzzleblast. I jumped back and there on the hill above me, at a landing (logging landing at the end of a haul road) I see a pick-up truck and a hunter ....the one that obviously just shot........running towards the truck and he gets in and takes off like a bat out of hell.

It scared the ever living crap out of me and I am sure it did him as well. It is also why I have very little use for blaze orange......it didn't prevent that near miss and I have watched over the years and can tell you of dozens of other instances where it did nothing to prevent hunting accidents.

It is a feel good thing.................the reason there are less accidents these days is due to hunter training requirements and more hunters having the 'be sure of yuour target and what's behind it before you shoot' drummed into their heads.

Where this happened has done away with the blaze orange requirement as the government could find no stats that proved it made any difference and in fact it has made no difference to the rate of hunting accidents in that province....the number of accidents has continued to decline since they did away with the blaze orange law. Education is the key.

I won't wear it unless I have to. But that is just me and I know there are many who swear by it. If it makes you feel good do it. It doesn't make me feel good..............sometimes I think it actually attracts attention in certain lighting conditions....but not in a good way.